RECENT CALIFORNIA DECISIONS

February 2006

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First District Court Rules that CEQA Does Not Apply to Interior Home Projects
Martin v. City & County of San Francisco, ___Cal. App.4th___

On December 29, 2005, the Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District ruled that a municipality cannot lawfully require the owner of a private singlefamily residence who proposes to modify a portion of the interior of his or her residence, in an area not visible to the general public, to undergo the burden and expense of a review of his or her proposed project pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), even when the residence is designated as a historic landmark. The court also held that a court cannot preempt administrative review under § 26 of the San Francisco Business and Tax Regulations Code of an application for a building permit.